CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Police agencies across the country are taking a pledge to recruit more women in their departments. This comes at a time when police leaders are expressing a need for more women to become sworn officers.
What You Need To Know
The 30x30 initiative is a national effort to increase the number of women wearing the badge
Participating agencies pledge to recruit more females into their department by 2030
CMPD has pledged a goal of 30% female representation within its sworn officers by 2030
It's part of the 30x30 initiative, a pledge to increase the representation of women in police recruit classes to 30% by 2030.
According to research from 30x30, women make up 12% of sworn officers across the country and only 3% represent police leadership in the U.S.
The 30x30 team consists of police leaders, researchers and organizations who are committed to seeing more women in policing.
Several police departments in North Carolina have committed to the pledge, including Chapel Hill, Durham, Fayetteville and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
CMPD Recruitment Divison Sgt. Candace Miles has been serving in the department for 11 years.
She was first motivated to enter law enforcement after meeting a female officer who was friends with her mother.
Miles says the officer was down-to-earth, friendly and took pride in being a female officer.
"Once I saw that, I was like that's what I want to do," Miles said.
Miles and her recruitment team work hours around the clock to identify qualified candidates for the department, especially women candidates.
The CMPD joined the 30x30 initiative in October 2021 with a goal of 30% female representation within CMPD sworn officers by 2030. Since taking the 30x30 pledge, the percentage of sworn CMPD female officers has risen from 14% to 16%, still higher than the 12% national average.
Miles credits this success to ongoing efforts the department has made to get more women into the policing profession.
The agency has increased its recruitment efforts by inviting college students on athletic teams, like Johnson C. Smith University, to the CMPD Training Academy. It's called "Cops and Cleats," and it gives students the chance to see what it takes to be an officer.
"We did a lot of hands-on initiatives at the academy," Miles said.
Although these actions are working, the department still has a ways to go to reach its 2030 goal. CMPD is budgeted for over 1,900 sworn officers. Right now, it has a little over 1,600 officers, leaving just under 300 vacancies in the department.
Miles says at times, it's a challenge trying to recruit candidates because the department is competing with other agencies who are also dealing with vacancies.
"It's a battle that I enjoy," Miles says. "It tests my recruitment strength."
Miles says the 30x30 pledge serves a two-fold effort to not only increase female presence but fill many of the current vacancies.
But she says there are some strong advantages with hiring more female recruits on the force.
"It's a proven fact, when females in law enforcement arrive on calls for service, we are able to deescalate situations on a greater scale than our counterparts," Miles said.
The 30x30 initiative team research supports Miles statements, stating the following:
- female officers use less excessive force
- female officers are perceived by communities as being more honest and compassionate
- they see better outcomes for crime victims
- female officers make fewer discretionary arrests
Miles says the department will continue its 30x30 efforts to recruit more women on the force. She's encouraging anyone interested in being a sworn officer to learn more about the CMPD hiring events and its hiring incentive.